The present invention is directed to a vehicle emergency warning system, and particularly to a vehicle emergency warning system that may be automatically deployed without the need for the driver of the vehicle to exit the vehicle.
Despite improvements in reliability, vehicles such as trucks, automobiles and trailers are still subject to breakdowns which require the vehicle to stop either on the road or alongside it. Such a stopped vehicle presents a danger to it's passengers and to oncoming vehicles which may be unaware that the other vehicle is not moving. The flashing warning lights, "emergency flashers", that are part of the standard equipment of automobiles and trucks sold today are often ineffectual since they are indistinguishable from standard brake and taillights and thus are easily ignored. Furthermore, in the case of a battery failure or other electrical problem, the emergency flashers can also be disabled.
The prior art contains numerous "Safety Kits" which may be carried in the vehicle and used to warn oncoming vehicles that the vehicle is stopped and/or to request assistance. A problem with such safety kits is that the operator of the stopped vehicle must find and retrieve the safety kit from wherever it is stored in the vehicle, assemble it, and place it on or alongside the vehicle. However by the time the safety kit is found, retrieved, assembled and positioned a serious accident may have already taken place. The present invention is directed to a vehicle emergency warning system that is readily automatically deployable without the need for retrieval, assembly and positioning and without the need for the driver or passenger to leave the vehicle. The present vehicle emergency warning system is compact, yet is easily viewable from the front, back and top of the vehicle. The design and construction of the inventive vehicle emergency warning system enables it to be readily built into a vehicle without the need for an extensive redesign.
The present invention is directed to a vehicle emergency warning system which is suitable for automatic deployment. The vehicle emergency warning system includes first and second movably joined elements bearing warning indicia. The first element is biased upwardly so as to stand upright with the second element forming a base. The vehicle emergency warning system is compact, lightweight and may be easily moved so that it may be positioned, depending on the type of the vehicle, at the front, alongside or in back of the stopped vehicle and is particularly suitable for roof mounting. The vehicle emergency warning system may be folded flat and can be readily built into a compartment in the vehicle so that it may be deployed without the need for the driver or passenger to exit the vehicle.